Gretchen Bederman

Natural Forces

Descending Oil

Statement

My images are a reflection of my life's experience.

As I create my art, I invite the serendipitous into my work utilizing the guidance of the symbolic, the narrative and the figurative. As I am composing, I think about the elemental forces of our existence, symbolized by fire, earth, air and water.

I combine memories of actual places with a blend of imagination, myth and dream. I use the figure - in human and animal form, to tell simple intuitive stories in abstract landscapes. I think of these narrative vignettes as depicting both the interior and exterior space of our experience in nature.

I weave my images with representation and abstraction to allow for interpretive play. As poetry releases our imagination and reaches for our emotional essence, I am exploring the possibilities of uniting the inner and outer world of the spirit in a tactile visual presence. My search is for images that resonate with the viewer on the unspoken landscape.